Bishop Hill Tavern

The Bishop Hill Tavern in Johnston RI is another hidden gem in the Ocean State. It’s conveniently located at the intersection of Route 6 and Bishop Hill Road right at the top of the hill. We were thinking drinking establishment and were surprised how delicious the food was, especially the shrimp scampi and the daily specials. Who doesn’t love their big portions? Over the 11 years that I’ve lived nearby, I was rarely if ever disappointed and they’ve never run out of my favorite beer on tap. 8v) The service is above average, the atmosphere ideal and the two cozy dining/​drinking areas are normally filled with friendly working-​class Rhode Islanders. The patio is especially nice in the spring and fall. I give them 5 stars and you will too! Darrell DiZoglio, Editor-​in-​Chief,

I like to come here for dinner. Not a bad place to grab a drink either. They have a very broad selection of food from traditional bar food (burgers, fries, sandwiches) to chicken entrees and Italian pasta dinners. I have enjoyed all the meals I have ordered here. Surprisingly, my favorite meal here is the spaghetti, sausage, meatballs, and peppers. The burgers and sandwiches are also really good, and have witty names, such as Fat Bastard, Broke Back Burger, and the Jersey Shore sandwich (steroid free chicken of course!). The also have a truly amazing sandwich called the ‘420’ with fried chicken, jalapeño poppers, bacon, and macaroni and cheese.
The service here is always good. They also have a cool outdoor area. They also occasionally have had live music while I was there.
I would not recommend coming here if you are looking for some quiet. It is usually pretty loud in here between the music and the locals who drink at the bar.
The only negative I can think of is some of the dinner prices (I think they recently went up). $ 16 for some of the entrees seems a little steep for this place. But other than that, the prices of the sandwiches and burgers are pretty standard.

A good local pub with cozy atmosphere. This place definitely has that old time tavern cozy and welcoming feel. The waitress and bartender were very nice and accommodating with good service. We had drinks and food which were both good. I wouldn’t say the atmosphere or food is exceptional but a great little pub with good food, good drinks, good service and warm tavern atmosphere.

Saw this place come up on
with a bunch of 5-​star ratings, makes me wonder if those people are real. Been to this place several times to give it a chance since 2003. Every time I say why did I bother. The place continues to have local drunk «riff raff» in the joint posturing like tough guys from 8 pm on, and the management continues to be a farce. I am not going back again until it changes ownership. Great place if you are 18 – 22 and want to get your drink on.

The food is a stepabove bar food. THe drinks are VERY generous. My girlfriends and I ordered Cosmos and we could really feel the alcohol! Not a bad thing! They still tasted good. It was a little loud for us but what do we expect on a weekend night I guess. Our bartender/​waitress impressed all of us being able to take care of so many people at once, and she didn’t mess anything up, and also we felt like we were taken care of and paid attention to. You don’t always see that when the bartender is also waiting on tables. They have a firepit outside and games (like a giant Jenga set!) and if it wasn’t so cold we would have loved to have sat outside and enjoyed the atmosphere!

Yes to everything. this place is awesome. food, drinks, prices, service are all outstanding.

This has been on my mind, and after finding out she is the manager I thought I should share. So last week I am sitting at the bar with a person sitting to my left. We are both from out of town. But when I am in Johnston Rhode Island working I enjoy eating the food and the beer is always cold at Bishop Hill. As for the bartenders, you won’t find a better bunch of gals. They make everyone feel like they belong. But when the lady behind the bar says out loud while talking to a customer to my right. Let me remind you. I was just told she is the manager. The man to my right says something about the news on TV. The managers reply was this. Fuck those niggers. The man to my left looks at me and as I look at him we both say no way. I say to her excuse me but did you just say that. Her reply was don’t worry there are no nigger in scituate. That’s my story. It’s something I wanted to share.

If you enjoy old and sticky joints with blah food, this is your place. Tried it twice and both times I wondered why I was there. Not the place for me…

After a few hours on the road, my family and I decided to stop for a tank of gas and noticed the Bishop Hill Tavern and decided to grab lunch This turned out to be a fantastic decision! The menu is varied but still contains many traditional American favorites and the prices are 100% fair– considering the quality of the food and the huge portion sizes!
By far the standouts were the burgers. The long list gives a lot of options as far as toppings. Each party had tender, flavorful, juicy meat. These were some of the best burgers we’d ever tasted.
If you’re in the area, check out this restaurant. The inside might be a little gloomy, but the prices and the quality of the food make it well worth the experience!

Huge menu. Something for everyone. Been a handful of times. Seems like all locals. Mixed crowd. Good drink selection. I’d go again.

We stop here regularly on Sunday nights coming home from boating. For a place that doesn’t look like much and has some pretty hard core drinkers and smokers among its patrons, the food is surprisingly good with generous portions.
My wife usually gets the chili. They will cook the wings to my specifications (crispy), which is a big plus for me. We’ve never been disappointed with the seafood, such as steamers, either.
The back room is somewhat nicer than the front, but they have a tendency to leave the back door open, which means you’re subjected to cigarette fumes from the patio.
Rumor is the Bishop’s Brew is really PBR.
7÷5÷15 update:
Lowdown on «Bishop’s Brew» is it’s the beer du jour — could be Rolling Rock, Killian’s or anything. It’s best to ask first.
The Tavern, though still very good, seems to be slipping a bit and I reduced it to 4 stars. Sour cream now comes in tiny pre-​packaged containers ($ 1 upcharge) instead of a generous cupful. Service staff is green and untrained; if you don’t want your apps and entrée to come out simultaneously as ours did, better order them separately. I asked for angel hair and got linguini instead. The waitress obviously knew about the substitution, but did not say anything until I pointed it out and then it was no apology, just «We’re out of that (angel hair).»

For a place outside of Providence, they have Providence/​slightly high prices on some drinks.
Mixed drinks are not their forte, and they vary between giving you real glasses and solo cups. To me real glasses are kind of a symbol of adulthood and the establishment trusting their patrons.
Service is a bit lackluster, but at the same time I’m sure they weren’t over enthused by the Columbus Day weekend everyone home for the «holiday» crowd. That being said I’ll probably be there again next year

Great old feel to the place. Amusing signs. Good service. The food was very good also. I had the wings and a blue cheese and mushroom burger. All was good.

What an unexpected pleasure!
On the road back from a night at Mohegan Sun, bleary-​eyed and unwilling to remain adrift in the food desert that is the stretch of 395 between Uncasville and Boston, we let Google Maps take us on a more town-​based trip, and we’re glad we did. We needed lunch, so we thought this way would get us to a place that at least had sandwiches.
It brought us to Bishop Hill Tavern. At a stop light, in the rain, we spotted this place out the car window, and a split second decision had us turning into the parking lot. We had zero idea of what to expect — other Unilocal reviews were sparse, one stating only «try the Reaper burger». Well, any place that offers a burger named for the Angel of Death sounds good to me, so in we went.
The front room has a small bar, with maybe 10 seats, around a TV that was playing local news read by a man with very strange eyebrows. They had five taps, 4 national and one local. The fridge is full of good bottled beers, from all over the country — no «budbudlightcoorslightmichelobrollingrock» nonsense from our bartender, who was a pleasant young woman who left us alone, but sat nearby watching the odd TV man, in case we needed anything.
The menu reads like something from an Adam Richman dream — the «Reaper» burger involves 2 patties, a lot of bacon, and some other heart-​stopping goodies, between two grilled cheese sandwiches. A chicken sandwich on the menu involved jalapeño poppers and fried pickles. *Not* for the high of cholesterol. We both got burgers, and they were VERY good. No soggy brioche, no shortage of pickles.
The place was well nigh deserted, and the back room had a sort of disused look, with stools up on the tables — like we were there at the last seating before they closed to fumigate, but other than that, I would come back here in a second if I ever had any reason to be in this section of sparsely populated Rhode Island.

We didn’t eat here so can’t comment but their patio is awesome! Tons of games– giant jenga, bocce, foosball, ping pong and corn hole which made it really fun and easy to spend time there. Really fun to hang out on a summer night, drink some beers, listen to music and chill. We originally ordered our drinks at the bar but were pleasantly surprised when the bartender/​waitress checked in with us outside and brought out another round (the service was great even when they got busy).
It got pretty happening around dinner time even though it was a Monday and we were happy to be outside rather than competing for space in the slightly dark interior rooms.
Great beer specials– the hubby got $ 1 mugs of rolling rock, I enjoyed my $ 3 pints of Blue Moon (extra classy with an orange wedge). I would recommend coming here for a fun drinking and hang out place.

Walked in and walked out. Drunk guys stumbling around the parking lot. People smoking weed in the back. And servers no where to be found.

Cool Spot
Decent bar with decent apps (wings really good).
The big draw here is in the summer. This place a very cool outdoor area with a bocce ball court, fireplace and large outdoor bar area.
Tried the monster burger special (split it, it’s 16 oz) it was pretty good.
Tip: sit in the bigger bar area or check out the outdoor spot at night
Value:
Very affordable, the giant burger is only 11 bucks, deals on wings and 2 dollar house drafts. Decent cheap night out.
Thanks

I’d go back. While it’s not the best food or cocktails I’ve ever had, this is a comfortable space with a huge outdoor seating area and a laid back vibe. And yes, they even have a bocce court.
While sipping on a beer, I enjoyed a plate of buffalo calamari, then switched to peruse the tavern’s martini list. Mixed drinks don’t seem to be their strongest suit, and my martini with peach vodka and coconut rum was terrible (but shame on me for curiously choosing it).
Service was good — our waitress seemed a little miserable but was extremely quick with food and drink orders.
Overall, a pleasantly average spot. I think they achieve what they’ve set out for — a cozy neighborhood bar.

I went here for dinner with my wife on a Saturday night and was immediately surprised by the lack of patrons during what should be one of the busiest nights for a restaurant.
The interior is split into two separate rooms, each with their own bar and multiple TVs for viewing. Neither room was particularly inviting, with dark colors and low lighting conditions. We sat ourselves at a booth and waited a few minutes for one of the staff to come over.
It appears that the bartenders also perform dual-​duty as wait staff for diners and they seem unenthused about it. When our waitress/​bartender came to our table with the menus, she immediately asked if we wanted appetizers and seemed to forget to ask us about our drinks. My wife politely asked to order drinks first and let us peruse the menu.
I tried to order a Narragansett Pale Ale on draft, which was listed on their menu, but was told «don’t even bother with that menu», which was kind of confusing. I was offered a Berkshire Brewing Co. Steel Rail Pale Ale as an alternative, which I gladly accepted.
We continued to order the «wings» (no indication of how they were prepared, bone-​in or boneless, or quantity) with some buffalo sauce. They arrived promptly and were the best thing about my experience here. They were bone-​in wings, a little on the small side, but cooked to the right amount of crispiness with a good dosage of a spicy buffalo sauce.
Looking over the rest of the menu, there were a plethora of options. While this might be a good thing for the undecided, it indicates to me that the kitchen doesn’t do many things well. With trepidation, my wife and I both ordered burgers. I opted for the Philly burger (sauteed mushrooms, onions, and cheese), my wife ordered a burger that was sandwiched between a grilled cheese.
The burgers arrived with little delay and we started in. My burger was particularly greasy and tasted as if it had come off an old, dirty grill. I have a feeling that frozen patties are the norm here. The french fries were nice and hot and appeared to be fresh, hand-​cut potatoes.
Overall, I don’t think I would return here for a meal. The staff don’t seem to be very keen on serving diners and the food fell short. However, with the attention paid to the bar clientele, I could see how coming here for some drinks and appetizers would be a smart move.

Its old! Cool log cabin ambience. Held my boyfriend’s surprise party here and we all had a good time. They have karaōke on the last Saturday of the month, which is what drew us there. The karaōke guys were great. Our bartender Bonnie was super nice, although I think she was busier than usual. There were two parties going on. Its small and dim. Didn’t eat but those who did said the food was good.